Performance of Major Cereals in Marathwada Region

The study was conducted in districts of Marathwada region to see the performance of major cereals in respect of area, production and productivity. Major cereal crops viz., Kharif sorghum, pearl millet, wheat and Rabi sorghum and total cereals were selected for study. Time series data for the period from 1985-86 to 2004-05, regarding area, production and productivity were collected from Epitoma of Agriculture, published by Government of Maharashtra. The compound growth rate was worked out by fitting exponential trend equation and significance was tested with help of correlation coefficient by using ‘t’ test. The results of study revealed that majority of districts showed decline in area under Kharif sorghum, Rabi sorghum and total cereals, whereas the area and production increased in case of pearl millet and wheat during the study period. Stagnation in productivity of Kharif sorghum was observed during the study period while productivity of pearl millet, wheat and total cereals raised in region and State.